Not to be outdone by their rivals in a two-town competition, Windsor Locks selectmen could approve a proposed development agreement for the proposed third Connecticut casino as soon as Tuesday, the town’s first selectman said Sunday.

Chris Kervick said he was pleased to hear the details of the proposal the East Windsor Board of Selectmen approved Saturday.

Windsor Locks and East Windsor are the only towns left in the running for the $300 million “satellite” casino the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes hope to build as a hedge against the impact of MGM Springfield, the $950 million resort casino being built just north of Connecticut’s northern border.

“We have an offer on the table,” Kervick said. “We’re just waiting for them (the tribes) to say, ‘Yeah, we’ll go with that.’”

He said the terms of a deal Windsor Locks has negotiated with the tribes and the one the East Windsor selectmen approved are “extremely similar.”

“We’re just a shade under theirs, but now we know where they stand so we can tweak ours a bit if we need to,” Kervick said.

East Windsor selectmen approved a deal that calls for the tribes to pay the town $3 million up front and $3 million a year thereafter – on top of an estimated $5.5 million in annual tax payments – if they decide to build off Interstate 91 on property now occupied by a former Showcase Cinemas building. Robert Maynard, the East Windsor first selectman, said Saturday he believes the tribes would tear down the building before putting up a casino.

Kervick said the Windsor Locks agreement specifies that a portion of the tribes’ payments to the town would go directly to residents in the form of a tax credit.

Windsor Locks’ casino site, a 76-acre property that used to be a tobacco field, is located on Route 20 near the I-91 interchange. It’s near Bradley International Airport and was previously considered as a location for an outlet mall that never materialized.

While conceding that the East Windsor site provides “high visibility” from the interstate, Kervick said he believes the size of the Windsor Locks site is a major selling point. He said the casino development itself would only require 30 to 40 acres.

“It’s large and it’s level,” he said. “The East Windsor site’s got more obstacles.”

Kervick discounted the notion that East Windsor’s pitch benefits from the fact that it doesn’t require the town to subject the agreement to a referendum vote. Windsor Locks would conduct such a vote.

If Windsor Locks selectmen approve the casino agreement at a special meeting Tuesday, the town could hold a referendum within a matter of weeks, Kervick said.

The legislature would have to pass a law legalizing a commercial casino in the state before the tribes’ plan ultimately could move forward.

“If we have a referendum, the tribes could go to the legislature and say they have evidence of the host community’s support,” Kervick said. “It seems to me that would give the legislature more comfort. It would make the agreement a better product.”

He said the deal that the selectmen are expected to approve Tuesday would “sail through” a referendum.

“I like our chances,” he said.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com